Category: Lifestyle

In my New Years Resolution post, I mentioned that I wanted to become a vegetarian. When I originally wrote that blog post, I had every intention to make that lifestyle change. I prayed for strength daily because I knew that this wasn’t going to be an easy task. After a month of no meat, I quickly realized that this wasn’t working. Being a vegetarian just didn’t fit my lifestyle…at the moment. Here are my four reasons why I stopped being a vegetarian.

Going out to eat was difficult

Prior to being a vegetarian, I loved going to different restaurants. TGI Fridays, Olive Garden, Subway; you name it, I ate it. However, when I cut out meat, I eliminated a lot of the meals that I loved at different places. (It’s important to note that I wasn’t a full vegetarian; I was still eating fish.) Keeping fish a part of my diet made things a little easier. However, every restaurant doesn’t offer fish. Plus, I live in an area where there aren’t a lot of vegetarian options, so I was stuck eating a lot of side dishes if there weren’t any fish options. As a result of this, I often didn’t have full meals unless I cooked.

My Parents eat meat

Becoming a vegetarian required me to cook a lot of my meals because my parents were eating meat. My parents were indifferent about my decision, but they just made it VERY clear that they weren’t going to change their diet (which I was completely aware of). Making such lifestyle change was difficult because I had no control of the food that came in the house.

I had to cook more

Now, I love a good home cooked meal, but I HATE cooking. When it comes to cooking, I am so lazy lol. Since my parents weren’t going to cook any vegetarian meals, I had to be responsible for my breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus school and other responsibilities. For a brief moment I considered meal prep, but that could be a lot of pressure on me. I usually finalize my work and school stuff on a Sunday, so cooking a week’s worth of food would complicate things.

My parents would eat my food

Whenever I would cook, my parents would take my food and couple it with meat as if it were a side. That infuriated me. The whole point of me cooking was for me to provide food for myself, since they were eating things that I couldn’t. Since they were also indulging in my food, the food didn’t last as long as I planned.

After a month of eating vegetables (and the occasional fish entrée) I had to give up becoming a vegetarian…for the moment. I enjoyed the colorful meals I created, so I plan to embark on this journey again. Next time, I plan to attempt this when I move out. This way I will have more control over what food comes in and what is being prepared.

Happy New Year,everyone! 2015 has had its high moments, but it has overall been a buzzkill…at least for me. It even ended on a negative note (more on that later). Me, along with other twenty somethings were waiting patiently for 2016 to roll in. A new year, a new start, right? Well…

A new start, starts with you. YOU. Once you make that decision to take a new path, you have to put forth a little bit of effort. “Faith without works is dead.” James 2:17 (NIV) We can pray for a new job, or a higher GPA, but are you willing to work for these things? Are you actively searching for a job? Are you studying and taking notes for better test grades? Right.

With 2016, we need to be workers instead of wishers. Let’s stop making excuses and being scared. What’s the worse that could happen? I’ve always heard the phrase, “shoot for the moon, and even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.” I’ll be honest, in the past month and a half, I’ve missed the moon a few times. However, I didn’t let it stop me, I learned from it, and I kept it moving. Don’t get me wrong, missing on an opportunity is painful, but we can’t let one failure define us. Don’t let fear keep you from moving forward this year. Make 2016 a year of productivity. Make things happen for you this year.

A few months ago I had a meeting with a mentor of mine. We usually meet twice a month to discuss my career goals, classes, issues, etc. She listened to me when I confessed that I no longer wanted to be a physician. In fact, she encouraged me to explore other interests and find my niche in life.

At this point, I had no idea how to go about this. I had different hobbies that I enjoyed, but how was I going to turn them into careers? Then it came to me. One of my favorite Youtubers, Jouelzy, said on her video that before she turned 30, she was going to make a list of her childhood dreams and include reasons why she didn’t follow them. What dreams that didn’t have reasons, she was going to follow them.

That was my answer, so I followed suit.

My childhood dreams consisted of:

Being an Artist

Being a Scientist

Being a Radio Personality

You’re probably thinking, why isn’t “physician” included? Well, I made the decision to pursue medicine in high school.

So, I didn’t pursue art because I had no clue what career that would put me in. As a high school student, I didn’t know about the different aspects of art. Out of fear, I kept art as a hobby. I can’t stand working in a lab, so being a scientist is definitely out of the question. I never tried to become a radio personality because I’m extremely shy lol, and after a while, I stopped listening to the radio.

My first post consisted of me stating that I had a change in career plans. Since then, I’ve researched different things and what I would have to do and in order to pursue them. I’ve decided that whatever I pursue, I have to satisfy the creative spirit that has been stifled all of these years. It doesn’t necessarily have to be in the arts, but it has to creative. I received a notification from my SITC app that confirmed this transition. It included a scripture that stated:

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9 (NIV)

I have to embrace my art, my blog, my creativity. I’m glad that my mama is on my side. More importantly, God is on my side. No more resisting my purpose. It’s only up from here. So, if you are anything like me, embrace your inner “self”. For me, it was my inner “artist”. For you, it may be your inner “athlete”, or inner “scientist”. If you are confused about your career path, reflection and prayer is the best way. Reflect on things you truly enjoy, and pray about moving forward.

This post was actually supposed to go up New Year’s Day, but I had some technical difficulties. However, I’m thankful for them because it gave me time to revamp my post. Originally, I wanted to include my goals, or “resolutions”, as some would call them. Which, I still plan to do, but I also want to include some goals for my blog, as well as my natural hair.

Lifestyle Goals

Strengthen my relationship with God

Drink more water, Less soda

Start yoga

Become a Vegetarian (more on this in another post;)

Read at least 5 books this year.

Blog Goals

Post at least twice a week

Include more visuals in my post

Try to increase my word count

Natural Hair Goals

Retain more length

Incorporate more protective styles

Grow out the little bit of heat damage and cut it

Hopefully writing down my goals will keep me accountable. I hope and pray that 2016 will be a positive and prosperous year for all of you.

I’ve been in college for three years and I just realized that I don’t know what I want to do after I graduate. Like, I honestly have no idea…

When I started college, I wanted to be a doctor and own my own practice. My ego loved everyone’s reactions once they heard my goals. Looking back, that’s probably what kept me going as long as I did. I managed to endure three long years of Bio 121 and 122, Chemistry 121 and 122, Organic Chemistry, Physics, Cell Biology and Microbiology…only to find out that all of this was in vain. After having the opportunity to work briefly in the health care field, I realized that I didn’t want anything to do with a hospital. If I was a freshman or a sophomore, this wouldn’t be a problem, but I’m a junior. I’m too far to start over, but I want to pursue something else. I want a new lease on life.

My doubts happened a couple of months ago. Fast forward to the present time, and I am still in the same spot. I’ve kept the same major, but my career plans have changed multiple times. It took me a couple months to accept it, but I realized that it’s okay to be unsure. A lot of people may side-eye me for making changes to my life at such a time, but I have to go with my gut on this one. If pursuing an MD isn’t my dream, then why would I continue to pursue it? At this rate, if I continue down the pre-medical track, I would be living someone else’s dream, and not my own.

I wish I could tell you that I found my niche, but I haven’t. However, I’ve made the decision to just take it day by day and focus on the present. I know, easier said then done, right? Trust me, I still have my days where I’m completely bummed out about not knowing. However, instead of focusing on the negative aspects of not having any career plans, I plan to focus on the positive. For example, instead of getting depressed about not having an “earthly” purpose, I can get excited about the fact that there is still a “spiritual” purpose. I can get excited about the fact that I still have life. My beliefs tell me that as long as I’m focused on my “spiritual” purpose, my earthly purpose will reveal itself.